Praise for Aradia “An important document in the history of contemporary pagan witchcraft. Craig Spencer’s innovative interpretation builds on the original text to find in it a rich source of inspiration for personal philosophy and practice.” —Dr. Vivianne Crowley, author of Wicca: The Old Religion in the Modern World
“Craig Spencer offers a fresh translation and re-exploration of perhaps the most important foundation text of the modern witchcraft revival, and from it draws inspiration for the creation of a workable new system of devotional and magical Craft.” —Gemma Gary, author of Traditional Witchcraft
“Craig Spencer’s new translation is a valuable contribution to the expanding canon delving into Leland’s profoundly influential Aradia, Gospel of the Witches, with 40 newly translated lines, a sincere argument that Leland’s errors and indulgences confirm the fundamental legitimacy of the text, and evidence of the survival of the worship of Diana amongst the Witches of ‘Italy.’ More remains to be discovered but ultimately the deepest and most profound mysteries can only be known through experience. Spencer focuses on how practitioners can work with Aradia, and offers a heartfelt collection of personal practices so the reader will discover that it is Diana’s full moon illuminating the wisdom within every seeker’s heart, where the mystery of Aradia resides.” —Phyllis Curott, internationally best-selling author, attorney, activist, teacher, founder of the Tempio di Ara, and creator of The Witches’ Wisdom Tarot
ARADIA
© Hayley Drake Photography
About the Author Craig Spencer is a Lancashire-born Anglo-Italian witch who practices Traditional Lancashire Witchcraft. His academic background earned him a bachelor of science degree with honours from the University of Salford and a postgraduate certificate in education from the University of Central Lancashire. He is an integrated therapist and Reiki teacher. In his downtime he enjoys reading, learning new languages (currently Mandarin—“ni hao!”), and has a love for all things comedy and horror. Craig can be found on Instagram @witchcraftunchained and Twitter @CraigSpencer90.
Llewellyn Publications Woodbury, Minnesota
Aradia: A Modern Guide to Charles Godfrey Leland’s Gospel of the Witches © 2020 by Craig Spencer. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including internet usage, without written permission from Llewellyn Publications, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. First Edition First Printing, 2020 Book design by Samantha Penn Cover design by Shannon McKuhen Cover illustration by Eric Hotz Llewellyn Publications is a registered trademark of Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Spencer, Craig, author. | Leland, Charles Godfrey Aradia. English. Title: Aradia : a modern guide to Charles Godfrey Leland’s Gospel of the witches / Craig Spencer. Description: First edition. | Woodbury, Minnesota : Llewellyn Worldwide, Ltd, 2020. | Includes bibliographical references. | Summary: “Craig Spencer’s Aradia is a new translation of Charles Godfrey Leland’s original Italian text and includes a full reprint of Leland’s own words as well as notes, analysis, and commentary to help you better understand the classic manuscript and the magical practices within its pages” —Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2020010510 (print) | LCCN 2020010511 (ebook) | ISBN 9780738764665 (paperback) | ISBN 9780738764788 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Leland, Charles Godfrey, 1824–1903. Aradia. | Witchcraft—Italy. | Diana (Roman deity) Classification: LCC BF1584.I8 L438 2020 (print) | LCC BF1584.I8 (ebook) | DDC 133.4/30945—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020010510 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020010511 Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd. does not participate in, endorse, or have any authority or responsibility concerning private business transactions between our authors and the public. All mail addressed to the author is forwarded but the publisher cannot, unless specifically instructed by the author, give out an address or phone number. Any internet references contained in this work are current at publication time, but the publisher cannot guarantee that a specific location will continue to be maintained. Please refer to the publisher’s website for links to authors’ websites and other sources. Llewellyn Publications A Division of Llewellyn Worldwide Ltd. 2143 Wooddale Drive Woodbury, MN 55125-2989 www.llewellyn.com Printed in the United States of America
This book is dedicated to: My Nan for giving me my love of books and reading. My Grandad for always teaching me the importance of learning about history and referencing from books. My Mum for always being there with support, encouragement, and advice. This book would not have been possible without all of them. Thank you! Also special acknowledgements to: Maddalena Taluti and Charles Godfrey Leland for preserving the text of Italian Witchcraft. Heather Greene, Nicole Borneman, and the team at Llewellyn for seeing the potential in this book and making it possible.
CONTENTS
Introduction 1
PART ONE
THE GOSPEL AND THE REVELATIONS One: How Diana Gave Birth to Aradia (Herodias) 11 Two: The Sabbat: Tregenda or Witch-Meeting— How to Consecrate the Supper 21 Three: How Diana Made the Stars and the Rain 39 Four: The Charm of the Stones Consecrated to Diana 47 Five: The Conjuration of the Lemon and Pins 55 Six: A Spell to Win Love 61 Seven: To Find or Buy Anything, or to Have Good Fortune Thereby 67 Eight: To Have a Good Vintage and Very Good Wine by the Aid of Diana 75 Nine: Tana and Endamone, or Diana and Endymion 83 Ten: Madonna Diana 95 Eleven: The House of the Wind 99
Contents
Twelve: Tana, The Moon-Goddess 111 Thirteen: Diana and the Children 119 Fourteen: The Goblin Messengers of Diana and Mercury 129 Fifteen: Laverna 133 Sixteen: Appendix: Comments on the Foregoing Texts 145 Seventeen: The Children of Diana, or How the Fairies Were Born 161 Eighteen: Diana, Queen of the Serpents, Giver of the Gift of Languages 167 Nineteen: Diana as Giving Beauty and Restoring Strength 173 Note 181 Conclusion 183
PART TWO
CRAIG, OR THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THIS WITCH Attending the Sabbat 189 Revealed Cosmology: Beliefs Revealed from the Gospel Texts 205 Apollo, the Witches’ God 211 Spells 215 Steps to Dedication 223 Bibliography 225 ——— x ———
INTRODUCTION
Charles Godfrey Leland is a name that few occultists would be unfamiliar with, which is not surprising. After all, he is the man who has been dubbed by many as the “Grandfather of Modern Witchcraft.” The title itself is much deserved, as without one of his most famous texts, the Craft as it stands for many today would not exist in its current form. The work that I am talking about is Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches [of Italy.] 1 Despite being a successful American author, it seems ironic that it is one of Leland’s final works that has earned him such a position of immortality in our community. Leland was truly a fascinating man. From the moment of his birth on August 15, 1824, he was exposed to the world of mystery and magic. According to Leland, his mother said that when he was born the nurse left him with a Bible, a key, and a knife on his breast, as well as lit candles, money, and a plate of salt at his head. These items were believed to bring about good fortune for young Leland as well as to make him a wizard. 1. Though “of Italy” does not appear on the front cover, it is present on Leland’s original title page inside the 1899 publication.
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Introduction
Leland’s mother appeared to believe that this rite was a sign of possible reincarnation. Leland said, “My mother’s opinion was that this was a very strong case of atavism, and that the mysterious ancestor had cropped out in me.” 2 It would seem that these events in Leland’s early years were a sign of things to come. Although he turned to journalism in 1853 and had a reasonably successful career, he would later find himself leaving this profession behind in favour of exploring folklore and the occult in 1869. By 1886 Leland had heard of the existence of a “manuscript setting forth the doctrines of Italian witchcraft” 3 and urged his Italian source Maddalena Taluti 4 to acquire a copy. Leland received the manuscript, along with other items of interest, in the mail eleven years later on January 1, 1897. By 1899 Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches had been published, and it began to introduce the magic of Italy to the world. Leland was known to hold a particular interest in both Gypsy traditions and Italian witchcraft, the latter being the reason he lived mainly in Italy from 1884 onward. The magic of the witches of Tuscany would hold Leland enthralled until his final days when he passed away in Florence, Italy, on March 20, 1903, aged 78.5 The book worked its way into the modern Craft revival, influencing the writings of Gerald Gardner and Doreen Valiente. These 2. Elizabeth Robins Pennell, Charles Godfrey Leland: A Biography (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1906). 3. Quotation from Leland’s appendix, which is presented in its entirety in chapter 16. 4. Joseph Jacobs and Alfred Nutt, eds., The International Folk-lore Congress 1891 (London: David Nutt, 1892), 453–54. 5. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online, s.v. “Charles Godfrey Leland,” accessed June 21, 2019, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Godfrey-Leland.
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Introduction
influences were most noticeable in Gardner’s Book of Shadows where they found themselves at home in a number of places, the most significant of these being in the opening of the Charge of the Goddess. The fact that the goddess is referred to as Aradia in most of the revivalist covens, at least in their inception, is a blatant reference to the Gospel text. The fact that Leland named the Gospel after Aradia and not Diana is important. It was believed that the Gospel recorded the teachings that had been inherited by the Italian witches from when Aradia had walked the earth. In this sense, naming the Gospel after her seemed appropriate. It was also appropriate to focus on Aradia as the principal goddess during the time leading up to the Craft revival. The Witchcraft Act had not yet been repealed and people were in hiding because of their faith. The Gospel, much like a Bible, offered divine guidance and assurance that freedom was attainable through the practices of the Old Religion. The Gospel did not disappoint. The repeal of the Witchcraft Act in 1951 saw witchcraft becoming a household word on a global scale, with covens opening their doors to camera crews and allowing the public to take a peek behind the metaphorical curtain. The impact of Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches was so immense that it is fair to say Leland would not have believed the influence this one book would have on the world at large. Fast forward to the 2000s, when the Gospel made its first appearance in my life. Growing up in the Lancashire county of North West England exposed me to a rich culture and history filled with myth, magic, and a down-to-earth attitude. My first introduction to witchcraft was in the form of the local traditions, spells, and charms that have been passed on in my family for generations. I started to learn at the age of five, so it is fair to say that I had a ——— 3 ———
Introduction
decent amount of Craft knowledge under my belt by the time I hit my teens. However, in my early teen years, I had little interaction with the more common forms of British traditional witchcraft that we think of today. Admittedly, I didn’t even know who the “major players” of the revival movement were. As an avid reader, I started to explore other kinds of witchcraft. Although I had a good selection of books at home, my high school library had a section which helped explore other traditions, cultures, and revivalist witchcraft. The internet had also started to change, moving from forums and simple web pages to include more freely available information. This enabled me to learn more about witchcraft and witches from around the world. When I first read Leland’s Gospel, I found that some of the stories felt incomplete or disconnected. Over the years I have found that others had similar feelings about the text. It was only when I decided to look back into the original Italian passages that were given in the text that I began to see missing information that helped close the disconnect. From then on, the Gospel has had a special place in my heart. As a half Italian, I enjoyed finding elements of folk practices that I was familiar with hidden within the Gospel’s pages. However, what struck me most strongly was that there is a rich and complete methodology of practice that has just been waiting to be explored. Over the years I have kept little notes and findings that related to the deeper themes that have been hiding in the Gospel for so long. These findings have led me to believe that despite the controversy that surrounds Leland’s Gospel, it is in fact a genuine text that documents the beliefs and practices of a surviving witchcraft tradition. The controversy that is so heavily placed upon the text has nothing to do with witchcraft directly, but rather the Gospel’s ori——— 4 ———
Introduction
gins and the authenticity of the text. In his 1999 The Triumph of the Moon,6 scholar and author Ronald Hutton explores these exact controversies, proposing three possibilities. The first is that Leland was correct and did receive an account of a surviving witch cult in Italy as handed down to him by Maddalena, his Italian source. The second proposal is that Maddalena fabricated and embellished her stories and accounts to please Leland. (The rationale here is that she was incentivised by receiving payment from him as an employer.) The final proposal is that Leland himself was the originator, or fabricator, of these accounts and that there is no actual evidence to support the claims that are presented in his Gospel. Though most people tend to believe that the truth of the matter lies somewhere between the second and third proposals, the first proposal should not necessarily be overlooked. I have found that there is more hidden under the superficial exterior presented in the text. Throughout, there are clear signs of degeneration of the stories that have occurred over time. The themes and imagery appear out of place with no direct explanation as to why they are there or what purpose they actually serve. This, in and of itself, speaks of something that has been passed on over time and become distorted during the process, which has left us with portions of the text that initially seem to be out of place or without meaning. This would be an unusual find in a text that is believed by so many to be completely fabricated. Furthermore, it would be of little benefit to Leland or Maddalena to plant signs of degeneration within the text only to leave them without any analysis. Leland did not even point them out as a way to support his initial claims. These telltale signs have gone largely unnoticed since the book’s 6. Ronald Hutton, The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999).
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Introduction
publication in 1899 and have not been explored in subsequent republications or retranslations. It is simply an unrealistic amount of effort to go to in order to create a sense of authenticity only to allow the signs to go by unnoticed. It was a conversation about these exact points that led to writing this work. I was telling my mum that another book had been published, and it was Leland’s original Gospel with a foreword added to the front. What had surprised me here was that, in 120 years, no one had looked deeper into the text. It was then that Mum said to me, “Don’t wait around for someone else to come up with it. You have been talking about this for years. You have the knowledge. You have the research. Write your own book. Don’t ever wait for someone else to come along and beat you to your own ideas.” With words of wisdom and inspiration dancing around in my head, I sat down and started typing. In the following chapters, you will find the original chapters (and titles) as presented by Leland under the heading of The Gospel. These will be accompanied by my own writings that explore the themes and the true heart of what is being presented in the Gospel passages under the heading The Revelations. The Revelations will also contain, when appropriate, quotations and references to other works that help to deepen the understanding of the themes and direction that the original passages were trying to present. The second section of this book will distil the essence of the Revelations and weave them into a workable framework to offer you a full grimoire and magical system based upon the teachings of Aradia. These suggestions can be used to expand an existing practice, act as the foundation of a solitary system, or provide the guidance needed to begin working in a group setting. Before we begin, I would like to make a brief note about the translations used in this text. Though Leland’s original translations ——— 6 ———
Introduction
of the Italian notes that he acquired have been criticised by some over the years, I would argue that they are both an example of their time and Leland’s own personal flair. Without his work, this book could not exist today. For the most part, the essence of what Leland translates is accurate but filled with a poetic edge. For example, in the first chapter of the Gospel, he presents a passage as “But thou were born to become again a mortal,” when a more exact translation of the same line would be “But you were born to be again mortal.” As there is very little difference between the two, I have chosen to honour Leland by retaining his original translation for the Gospel sections of each chapter. However, I have not retained Leland’s translations when the original translation has allowed a loss of the original meaning to occur. In these instances, I have revised the relevant passage or line without fanfare. I have also modernised some minor elements of outdated verbiage to make the overall reading experience easier for the eye to process. When this was not necessary, the original “thee and thou” type of dialogue has been retained, including in my own retranslations, in part to ensure that the overall flow of the text remains undisturbed. There were also forty lines of the original Italian text that Leland never translated at all. These have been translated and placed in their intended positions in the text to ensure completeness. Finally, I have decided for ease of flow to not include the original Italian lines of the Gospel, as those who are able to read and understand them would have very little use of a retranslation in any event. Similarly, those of you that would benefit from this retranslation would have very little use of pages of text that you are not able to read or understand.
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PART ONE
THE GOSPEL AND THE REVELATIONS
Part One
In this section you will find the Gospel presented and restored in full, just as it was originally intended. The corrected translations given here will allow you to fully understand the messages and teachings of the witches of Italy. This collection of texts therefore provides you with a unique insight into the magical and devotional practices of a distant time and presents you with a true literary treasure from the past that is no less relevant to witches today. The Revelations that accompany each of the Gospel passages will act as your guide through the text. Taking a practical approach to analysing the hidden themes and cultural subtleties, these sections will peel back the cloak of mystery that has concealed the rich traditions hidden under the surface of this text for far too long. Introducing this element to the text, along with the corrected translations, helps to bring a level of much-needed clarity to this incredible body of work and to find within it the sacred teachings of the goddess and her witches. By reading the Gospel and Revelations in tandem, you will discover a very meaningful compendium of witchcraft myth cycles as well as an assortment of useful magical practices that are still as relevant to today’s Craft as they ever were. As previously discussed, the pages that follow contain the foundational materials of the global Craft revival movement. These words have been the inspiration for many amazing people within our community, both famous and unknown. It is my hope that these words, in their present form, continue to act as a conduit of inspiration for you and all those who will come after you.
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HOW DIANA GAVE BIRTH TO ARADIA (HERODIAS)
The Gospel “It is Diana! Lo! She rises crescented.” —Keats’ Endymion “Make more bright The Star Queen’s crescent on her marriage night.” —Ibid. This is the Gospel (Vangelo) of the Witches: Diana greatly loved her brother Lucifer, the god of the Sun and of the Moon, the god of Light (Splendor), who was so proud of his beauty, and who for his pride was driven from Paradise. Diana had by her brother a daughter, to whom they gave the name of Aradia [i.e., Herodias]. In those days there were on earth many rich and many poor. The rich made slaves of all the poor. ——— 11 ———
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In those days were many slaves who were cruelly treated; in every palace tortured, in every castle prisoners. Many slaves escaped. They fled to the country; thus they became thieves and evil folk. Instead of sleeping by night, they plotted escape and robbed their masters, and then slew them. So they dwelt in the mountains and forests as robbers and assassins, all to avoid slavery. Diana said one day to her daughter Aradia: ’Tis true indeed that thou are a spirit, But thou were born to become again A mortal; thou must go to earth below To become a teacher unto women and men Who fain would study in thy school Which will be composed of witchcraft Yet like Cain’s daughter thou shalt never be, Nor like the race who have become, Infamous from suffering, Like the Jews and Gypsies, Who are all thieves and brigands; like unto them Ye shall not become …
The Revelations This opening passage to the Gospel is, on the surface, very simple. However, it is already packed with a wealth of information about the reason that Aradia was born, the condition of the lives of the witches at the time that these events are set, and the deity structure that was present in this world view.
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How Diana Gave Birth to Aradia (Herodias)
Deity Structure Firstly, it is important to note that the opening passage up to the line “Diana said one day to her daughter Aradia” never appeared in its original Italian in Leland’s published work; therefore, accuracy to his copying skills will be under scrutiny in this section. In the original opening passage, it would appear that Roman Catholic ideas have entered into the Gospel over time. As you will see later in this section, the whole mission of the witches is to overcome the oppression which they have been placed into, mainly by the Roman Catholic Church. It would seem odd to want to irradiate these ideologies if they were in fact part of the world view of the witches of the time. When first introduced to the theology of the witches, it is in the form of the goddess Diana. It is at this time that the Gospel states that “Lucifer is her brother.” With this in mind, the first clue is given to the true identity of the goddess of this faith and her brother, the sun god. In Roman mythology, it has long been established that the twin brother of Diana is the sun god Apollo. So strong is the connection between the two figures that in 1526, the artist Lucas Cranach The Elder dedicated a piece to them entitled Apollo and Diana. The painting is currently in the possession of the British Royal Family and has been since June 1844, when it was purchased on behalf of Prince Albert by Ludwig Gruner.7 With this in mind, it can be confidently stated that this initial corruption to the text obscures the fact that Aradia’s father is in fact Apollo. It can also be asserted that the line which reads “her brother Lucifer, the god of the Sun and of the Moon, the god of 7. Royal Collection Trust, “Apollo and Diana circa 1526,” accessed November 23, 2018, https://www.rct.uk/collection/407294/apollo-and-diana.
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Light (Splendor)” should only state that Apollo is the god of the sun, light, and splendor. Diana herself is the Goddess of the Moon. The Lives of the Witches These Revelations began immediately after a passage that, on the surface, appears to be calling out Jews and Gypsies as thieves and lowlifes; however, earlier in the passage, the Gospel tells that all who had become enslaved in Italy needed to turn to such lifestyles in order to survive and escape their slave masters. Although the two passages are broken apart, they are demonstrating that there were many people of different backgrounds who were being suppressed and enslaved at this time. It was a time of desperation and uncertainty. People were unsure how long they and their loved ones would live—let alone be free. The Reason for Aradia The reason for Aradia is much clearer when the deity structure that surrounds the Gospel of the Witches is understood. Aradia’s father, Apollo, features very little in the mission of his daughter; it is her mother, Diana, who sends her daughter to Earth to teach witchcraft to the people who have the will (the daring) to study under her. It is not surprising that Diana would be the goddess to send her daughter to help her people; she was considered by all of the Latin tribes of the time to be the goddess supreme when it came to patronage of the lower classes and slaves. Who else was going to hear their cries of despair and answer them with the compassion and the ferocity of maternal love? But why Aradia? Who is she and what does her name reveal about her true nature? There is a strong argument to be made that her name is actually a title. ——— 14 ———
How Diana Gave Birth to Aradia (Herodias)
Latin and its daughter language, Italian, are both known for having words that can have a number of meanings based upon context, the region or village it is spoken in, and a number of other factors. These variations are sometimes intentional, so a simple word or statement can carry a variety of significance. This can be seen in the name Aradia. Looking at both Italian and Latin, her name can be divided into two words: Ara and Dia. Together these words make some interesting possible statements. Furthermore, all of the following combinations are presented as true to her nature in the subsequent chapters that follow. So what is the meaning behind Aradia? Latin Ara: Altar, Refuge Protection, Voice Dia: By day, or relating to Diana
Leland has a number of spelling errors that appear to have been made from mishearing a word throughout his book. With that said, I cannot rule out the possibility that the word could also be: Dea: Goddess Italian Ara: Altar Dia: Give, Grant, Bestow Dea: Goddess
In a Latin context, Aradia can be seen as the daytime refuge, the living altar of the goddess Diana (with Diana’s nighttime face being the moon), or the daytime voice of Diana (a focal point when the moon is not visible). This reference to Aradia as the altar could also suggest that she was possessed by the spirit of Diana during a ritual ——— 15 ———
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practice similar to our modern day Drawing Down the Moon. In an Italian sense, Aradia is the altar that has been given to mankind. As Diana was a patron of slaves and the lower classes, many sought refuge in her temples. The imagery of the altar as a person is most likely also feeding into the Latin root of a daytime refuge. In other words, Aradia is a living temple, or at least a symbol of what it represents, to provide protection and liberation to the faithful. As Diana’s voice, Aradia may have been a “High Priestess” to the people, speaking the words of the goddess and promoting her worship and witchcraft. As was done with so many gods of the ancient world, Aradia seems to be a deity name that originated as a descriptive title of her function. This method of naming deities is logical, as it impresses on the deity itself and in the mindset of the faithful that this goddess has a specific function or rulership. In this way, people are given a reference that she is the one they should turn to when a particular type of influence is required. I also want to address the name Herodias, which Leland placed in reference to Aradia. Herodias was the Queen of Galilee mentioned in the Bible. It was her daughter, Salome, who requested the head of John the Baptist on a silver platter. It is unusual that Leland would make this connection here, as none of the original Italian passages include the name Herodias, only Aradia. This may be a sign that these myths were influenced by the biblical impressions of Italy at the time. Although the original Italian texts never actually use any name other than Aradia, it is also interesting to note that the name sounds very close to the title of Ovid’s classic work Heroides (The Heroines). Was this Leland’s way of showing Aradia’s position as a champion of her people, or was it a title given to her by the witches of Italy themselves? That, I am afraid, we will never truly know. ——— 16 ———
How Diana Gave Birth to Aradia (Herodias)
The Gospel And thou shalt always be the first of witches; The first witch to become in the world; And thou shalt teach the art of poisoning, To poison those who are great lords of all; To make them die in their palaces; And thou shalt bind the spirit of the oppressor; And when ye find a miserable peasant who is rich, Then ye shall teach the witch, your pupil, how To ruin all his crops with tempests dire, With lightning and with thunder, With hail and wind. And when a priest shall do you injury Or do evil by his benedictions, ye shall do to him Double the harm, with my name With the name of Diana, Queen of the witches! And when the priests or the nobility Shall say to you that you must put your faith In the Father, Son, and Mary, then always reply: “Your God, the Father, and Mary are Three devils … “For the true God the Father is not your God; I have come to destroy the bad people, The men of evil, all will I destroy! “Ye who are poor suffer with hunger keen, And toll in wretchedness, and suffer too Imprisonment; yet with it all ——— 17 ———
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Ye have a soul, and for your sufferings Ye shall be happy in the other world, But ill the fate of all who do ye wrong!”
The Revelations This part of the Gospel is one of the most exciting aspects of the text as it speaks of an origin story for witches. This section reveals that Aradia is not just the spirit of a witch, but the spirit of the first witch. Diana also makes a point of telling Aradia that although she is being sent back down to Earth, she will retain her position as the first of us all. For witches, this section of the Gospel acts as our origin story in much the same manner as Abraham is the origin point of Judaism. Aradia is our beginning, but more importantly, the Gospel previously stated that she is the daughter of the sun and the moon (god and goddess) which makes our (witches) origins divine. This revealed cosmology is useful for those who wish to embrace these teachings in their own personal path, as it provides the theological “backstory” of our craft. Maybe the story is true. As cosmologist Carl Sagan famously said, “We are made of star stuff.” This passage also highlights the power of the witches. Aradia teaches that the evil oppressors can be defeated by witchcraft if they are bound—“bind the spirit of the oppressor …” —or destroyed completely. They lose their power if they lose their sources of wealth—crops, land, etc. In the afterlife they will be made to pay for their evil ways. The Gospel states that we will be “happy in the other world, but ill the fate of all who do ye wrong,” which suggests either a theological heaven-and-hell scenario in the witches’ cosmological beliefs or at least a definite binary understanding of good and evil. ——— 18 ———
How Diana Gave Birth to Aradia (Herodias)
Whether this was a later addition from Catholic thinking cannot be identified. Nor can it be identified if the idea that the “true God” not belonging to the Catholics was a form of counter religion or strongly devoted “one true faith” thinking on behalf of the witches. Regardless, this section of the Gospel carries the message that using the power of witchcraft to even the odds is not something that the old gods will punish us for, in this or the other world.
The Gospel Now when Aradia had been taught, taught to work all witchcraft, how to destroy the evil race (of oppressors), she (imparted it to her pupils) and said unto them: When I shall have departed from this world, Whenever ye have need of anything, Once in the month, and when the moon is full, Ye shall assemble in some deserted place, Or in a forest all together join To adore the mighty spirit of My mother, Diana. Whoever would Fain learn all sorcery yet has not won Its deepest secrets, to them my mother will Teach her, all things as yet unknown. And ye shall all be freed from slavery, And so ye shall be free in everything; Ye shall be naked in your rites, both men And women also: this shall last until The last of your oppressors shall be dead; [And ye shall play the game of Benevento, Extinguishing the lights, and after that] Shall hold your dinner thus: ——— 19 ———
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The Revelations This closing passage instructs the witches that Aradia will leave the earth. As this is spoken of in the future tense, it is most likely to suggest that their teacher Aradia will die and they will be able to continue without her. It is made clear that the full teachings of Diana have been imparted, and the spirit of the goddess will continue to reveal the Craft to those who seek it. This passage makes the line “And ye shall all be freed from slavery, and so ye shall be free in everything” more impactful. Aradia tells the witches that they need no intermediary to access the sacred teachings; if they ask Diana, then she will provide. The message is simple: keep the faith. The very last section has been highlighted because it is a curious way to close the first chapter: “[And ye shall play the game of Benevento, extinguishing the lights, and after that] shall hold your dinner thus.” Not only did Leland provide a bridge into the second chapter by leaving an instructional cliff-hanger, but he also makes an insert into his translation: the phrase “extinguishing the lights” does not actually appear in the original Italian text at all. However, the translation of “the game of Benevento” is open to interpretation as many of the words can mean other things. Therefore, it would appear that Leland added clarity by highlighting that one of the words (moccola) was in reference to a candle end or snuffed candle. This is significant because it appears Leland used part of the material found in chapter 2 to supplement the end of this Gospel and to provide focus and clarity for his translation. Having translated all of the Italian passages myself, I find that Leland was justified in this decision as it provides a translation with the most logical and appropriate narrative.
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